State variations in child maltreatment reports among adolescents in the United States

ABSTRACTUnderstanding child maltreatment on a national level is complicated by lack of consistency in definitions of abuse and reporting by state. Adolescents experience child maltreatment, but responses to their maltreatment likely differ from younger children due to differences in development and vulnerability. The present study examined state variations of adolescent child protective systems reports using data from the 2015–2019 NCANDS. We calculated the rates of maltreatment reports, substantiations, and maltreatment subtypes per 1,000 adolescents in the population. Findings revealed wide variations across all three measured rates. Examining state variations involved with CPS is critical to informing policy and practice solutions.KEYWORDS: Child abuse and neglectchild protectionadolescentschild maltreatmentchild welfare Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationNotes on contributorsLucinda OkineLucinda Okine is a PhD Candidate at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work at the University of Southern California. Her research is focused on child and family welfare and the role of childhood adversity, childmaltreatment and family stress on the well-being of parents and their children. Using a family system and resilience lens, her research explores the strengths and challenges experienced by vulnerable families. Her research aims to inform families, child welfare workers, early childhood educators, and policymakers as they invest in children and build systems that enable all children and families to thrive.Rebecca RebbeRebecca Rebbes’s research examines the measurement of and community responses to child maltreatment. Her research is informed by 7 years of post-MSW practice working with families involved with child welfare systems, in both the public and private sectors. Rebecca has training using demographic methods and specializes in using population-based linked administrative datasets to better understand child maltreatment. Rebecca is the principal investigator of the NICHD-funded research project “The impact of COVID-19 on child maltreatment-related medical encounters and system responses using linked administrative data” (1R21HD105907-01).Julie A. CederbaumJulie Cederbaum is an associate professor in the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. Her work focuses on the impact of childhood adversity and family processes on the well-being of youth. Using a dyad and family systems lens, her research explores the strengths and challenges experienced by diverse families, and ways in which parenting processes and behaviors positively influence mental health, reproductive health, and substance use behaviors in children, adolescents and young adults.